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HIPAA Right to Access provision gives people a legal right to see their medical and health records They can also ask for a copy of the information. The OCR enforcement actions are being seen as a direct message from the OCR to the healthcare community about the importance of the HIPAA Right of access provision.
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This week the Office of Civil Rights settled five cases of HIPAA Right of access violations. All the five providers have agreed to pay penalties and implement a corrective action plan under OCR supervision. Last year, two more providers, Bayfront and Korunda paid similar fines for violating the HIPAA Right of access HIPAA Right of access provision.
Here’s the list of the five HIPAA settlements declared this week by the OCR. All Inclusive Medical Services (AIMS)- $15,000 Housing Works – $38,000 Beth Israel Lahey Health Behavioral Services (BILHBS) – $70,000 King MD – $3,500 Wise Psychiatry – $10,000
The OCR enforcement actions are being seen as a direct message from the OCR to the healthcare community about the importance of the HIPAA Right of access provision. As per OCR Director Roger Severino, “Patients can’t take charge of their health care decisions, without timely access to their own medical information.” Early 2019, the office for civil rights (OCR) announced the HIPAA Right of access initiative. Under this initiative, the OCR is vigorously enforcing the rights of patients to get access to their medical records promptly, without being overcharged, and in a readily producible format.
Mid 2019, a study revealed that nearly 51% of providers fail to comply with the HIPAA Right of access provision. Most providers failed to provide the requested information within 30 days. Of the five providers penalized this week, AIMS, King MD and Wise Psychiatry were investigated after receiving complaints that the providers weren’t allowing patients to access their PHI. BILHBS was investigated upon a complaint that the provider failed to respond in a timely manner.
The HIPAA privacy rule provides individuals with a legal enforceable right to see and receive a copy of the information in their medical and health records maintained by their healthcare providers and health plans. This includes the right to inspect or obtain a copy of their PHI, as well as to direct the covered entity to transmit a copy to another person or entity of the individual’s choice.
A covered entity cannot deny an individual’s request, except for certain limited circumstances. And, they must respond to the request as soon as possible. The permissible time limit for fulfilling a request is 30 days. A covered entity can extend this time by another 30 days, but only if it provides the patient with the reason for the delay. This should be in writing. All requests must be fulfilled within 60 days.
Once a covered entity receives a request for PHI access, they need to check if the requested information can be disclosed. The list of PHI that can be disclosed under the Right of access provision is huge.
Medical records Billing and payment records Insurance information Clinical and laboratory test results Wellness and disease management program files Medical images, such as X-rays Clinical notes • • • • • • •
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